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History of Rompope A Christmas Holiday Drink

¡Salud! [Photographs: María del Mar Sacasa]From seriouseats.com

Rompope is an eggnog-like drink made with eggs, milk, and vanilla flavouring. The egg yolks impart a yellow hue to the emulsified beverage. It is a traditional drink known as such in Costa Rica, El Salvador and particularly in Mexico, where, it is believed to have been originally made in the convents of the city of Puebla. The word rompope is a derivation of the word rompon, which is used to describe the Spanish version of eggnog that came to Mexico. The Spanish version utilizes rum as its main ingredient, hence the root of both words rom-pon and rom-pope, but in Central America, Guatemala,Honduras and El Salvador, there is also a similar beverage known as rompopo.

Seriouseats.com -The first rompope was brewed by nuns in the Santa Clara convent in Puebla, Mexico in the 17th century, a derivation of Spanish ponche de huevo. At the time, the Catholic Church was prominent in government and society, and convents often hosted visiting officials and religious dignitaries. As such, fine cuisine was developed in the cloisters with the Clarists garnering much acclaim for their confections and sweets.

Rompope is served chilled, often over ice, but, the drink is also popular in Nicaragua, where it is served warm as well. READ MORE